Flipkart Minutes closing in on Instamart's scale
What's the story
Walmart-owned Flipkart is giving established players like Swiggy Instamart, Blinkit, and Zepto a run for their money in the quick-commerce space. The company's dedicated service, Flipkart Minutes, has witnessed massive growth since its launch in August 2024. According to TechCrunch, it now handles between 1.1 million and 1.2 million orders per day, an impressive jump from around 390,000-400,000 in November last year.
Market competition
Blinkit, Zepto still far ahead of Flipkart
The growth of Flipkart Minutes has brought it close to Swiggy's Instamart, which handles around 1.4 million orders per day.
However, there's still a long way to go before it can match Blinkit and Zepto.
Blinkit leads the pack with 3.4 million-3.6 million daily orders while Zepto follows with about 2.4 million-2.6 million, according to market research firm Datum Intelligence's recent estimates.
Growth strategy
Flipkart adds around 700 micro-fulfillment centers in last year
Flipkart has been aggressively expanding its delivery infrastructure to fuel the growth of Minutes.
The service now operates between 1,020 and 1,050 micro-fulfillment centers, small warehouses located near customers for quick deliveries.
This is a major jump from just 600 in January and about 340 a year ago.
The company plans to add around 100 such facilities every month with an aim to reach 1,500 by the end of this year.
Customer loyalty
High customer retention for Flipkart Minutes
Flipkart Minutes is also witnessing a high rate of customer retention.
Between 65% and 70% of the people buying from the service every month are repeat customers.
The average order value is between ₹400 and ₹500 (approximately $4.20-$5.20), with fruits, vegetables, staples, dairy products, and meat being some of the fastest-growing categories on the platform.
Information
Service has reduced average delivery time to 11 minutes
Flipkart Minutes has managed to reduce its average delivery time from 13 minutes a year ago to about 11 minutes now. This is a testament to the company's commitment to efficiency and customer satisfaction in the highly competitive quick-commerce space.